AI in the Public Sector Conference: Gaining an Agentic Advantage

Dani is the Policy Manager for Data & AI at techUK, the UK’s leading trade association for the technology sector, with around 1,200 companies in membership ranging from the very smallest to the very largest tech companies operating in the UK. At techUK, Dani’s focus areas include Smart Data, the data economy, automated decision-making, international data transfers, and international data sharing. Prior to this, Dani worked in political monitoring, focusing on technology and culture, media and sport, and she also holds an undergraduate degree in History from the University of Bristol and an MPhil in Modern European History from the University of Cambridge.

Amy Carmichael is Public Services Research Lead at the Ada Lovelace Institute. She leads work exploring how data and AI are used by public services, seeking to shape policy and practice in sectors where AI tools are likely to bring profound change, such as health and care, education, justice and welfare.

Before joining Ada, Amy was Head of Digital Strategy and Innovation for Adult Social Care at the Department of Health and Social Care. She was previously a Senior Policy Adviser in the UK Government’s Open Innovation Team, where she worked with academics to generate analysis and ideas for policy, spanning justice, youth policy and civil service reform. Her first civil service role was in prison policy and she started her career running improvement projects in hospitals.

Tess Buckley is a digital ethicist and musician. After completing a MA in AI and Philosophy, with a focus on ableism in biotechnologies, she worked as an AI Ethics Analyst with a dataset on corporate digital responsibility (paid for by investors that wanted to understand their portfolio risks).

Tess then supported the development of a specialised model for sustainability disclosure requests.

Currently, at techUK, Tess is north star as programme manager in how digital ethics and AI safety is demystifying, and operationalising ethics through assurance mechanisms and standards.

Outside of Tess’s work, her primary research interests are in AI music systems, AI fluency and tech by/for differently abled folks.

James Fletcher leads the BBC’s Responsible AI team, shaping how the UK’s most trusted news provider and the world’s largest public service media organisation uses AI in ways that are trustworthy, transparent and aligned with its public service values.

James oversees the BBC’s approach to AI governance across internal development and use of 3rd party tools, with a focus on turning high-level principles into responsible editorial and business decisions by empowering teams and building a culture of responsible AI use.

James also led and authored the BBC’s groundbreaking research with the European Broadcasting Union on News Integrity in AI assistants, examining how AI assistants handle accuracy, attribution and trust in news contexts.

​At NatWest Group, he led critical enterprise engagements with regulatory bodies like the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on AI Live Testing, for safe, robust, and ethical deployment of technologies. As a Senior Assessor for Responsible AI and Data Ethics, Alex also shapes internal governance frameworks.​

With a technical background spanning Large Language Models (LLMs), Agentic AI, and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), he built cross-functional AI systems and drove bank-wide AI adoption strategies from initial pilots to enterprise-scale deployment.

​An accomplished public speaker and technical mentor, Alex frequently leads industry workshops, collaborates with global vendors, while championing responsible innovation. He brings a unique perspective on scaling cutting-edge AI capabilities while maintaining rigorous safety, compliance, and user-centric design. ​

Heather Cover-Kus is techUK’s Associate Director, Central Government & Education.

Heather works to represent the supplier community of tech products and services to Central Government, encouraging effective market engagement between suppliers and buyers, and supporting the transformational power of tech in public service delivery. She is a big advocate for appropriate and meaningful social value in public procurement.

Prior to joining techUK in April 2022 as Head of Central Government Programme, Heather worked in the Economic Policy and Small States Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat.  She led the organisation’s FinTech programme and worked to create an enabling environment for developing countries to take advantage of the socio-economic benefits of FinTech.

Before moving to the UK, Heather worked at the Office of the Prime Minister of The Bahamas and the Central Bank of The Bahamas.

Heather holds a Graduate Diploma in Law from BPP, a Masters in Public Administration (MPA) from LSE, and a BA in Economics and Sociology from Macalester College.

Dr Ravinder Singh is a distinguished leader in digital transformation and emerging technologies, with a career marked by C-suite roles and managing budgets up to £1.5 billion. His expertise spans a vast technical landscape, including generative AI, quantum computing, and cybersecurity, applied across global public and private sectors for entities like the World Bank and various national governments.

Recently recognised as one of the Top 100 IT Leaders in the UK for 2025 by Computing, Dr. Singh also serves as a Judge for the prestigious National AI Awards in 2025 and 2026, is an OpenUK Ambassador and was a runner-up for the Open UK AI Award.

An accomplished academic and innovator, Dr Singh holds two software copyrights and has authored 15 research papers in addition to the book Model Driven Business Process Engineering. His contributions to the field earned him a nomination for the Shri Dewang Mehta National Award for Innovation and multiple inclusions in Who’s Who in the World. Beyond his technical accolades, he is a highly certified professional (PMP, Prince-2, ISO 27001 Lead Auditor) who actively shapes the industry’s future through curriculum design and his role as a Visiting Faculty member at numerous universities.

​Kirstine is Chief AI Officer at the Met Office, where she leads the integration of artificial intelligence across one of the UK’s foremost scientific organisations. Her work focuses on applying AI to complex real-world challenges, from advancing weather forecasting and climate science to strengthening national resilience.

​Kirstine is a Fellow of The Alan Turing Institute and an Honorary Professor at the University of Exeter. With a career spanning data science, entrepreneurship, innovation, and public sector leadership, she brings a distinctive perspective on how AI can be deployed responsibly and at scale to deliver meaningful societal impact.
Alongside her technical and strategic expertise, she is a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion and for the power of interdisciplinary collaboration. She believes these are essential drivers of innovation, ethical AI adoption, and lasting social good.​
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David Lewis is a Deputy Director in the Government Legal Department (GLD) and has been a government lawyer for twenty-four years, advising various departments including the MoD, HMRC and DfT. Over those years, he has led legal teams working on some of the most prominent areas of government policy and delivery, including Brexit and HS2.

In 2024, David moved to a newly created role, leading GLD’s AI Programme, with a focus on how the Department can use generative AI to provide an even better legal service to the Government

Scott Hayden is the Head of Teaching, Learning, and Digital at Basingstoke College of Technology (BCoT), where he leads a dedicated team focused on digitally enriching education and empathy-driven coaching. His team, composed of expert Learning Coaches and Learning Technologists (former students turned staff members), is committed to enhancing educational practices through innovation. Under Scott’s leadership, BCoT has received several accolades, including the 2018 TES FE Award for ‘Outstanding use of Technology’ and the 2024 Google Impact Award for pioneering AI integration in education. Awarded for AI integration and technology excellence, he has trained over 4,200 educators since 2023/2024 and advises nationally on EdTech, contributing to AI in Education initiatives.

Between May 2023 and March 2025, Scott delivered keynotes and training on AI for educators, reaching over 5,200+ professionals across the UK and Estonia. He also serves as a Google for Education Champion, and a member of the DfE’s Edtech Evidence Board.

Since 2023, Scott has been an active member of the AI in Education initiative, a cross-sector effort dedicated to exploring the transformative potential of AI in learning environments. His purpose lies in leveraging technology and empathy to create meaningful, impactful educational experiences that empower both educators and students.

Gillian Leng is a clinician by background, with a passion for using evidence to improve care.  Her career has covered a breadth of sectors including public health, healthcare, education and social care. She joined the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), in 2001 to establish its clinical guidelines programme.  In 2020, she became only its second CEO.

Gillian has worked closely with the life science industries, patient organisations, professional societies, academia, plus local and national government across the United Kingdom. She has chaired national and international boards and committees, bringing comprehensive media experience across a range of complex topics.

Gillian is now President of the Royal Society of Medicine, Chair of the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council and a non-executive for the Department of Science Innovation and Technology.  She retains her interest in the use of high-quality evidence and is a Trustee of the Cochrane Collaboration and a Council member of Alive, the international Alliance for Living Evidence.  In 2024, she was asked by government to lead an independent review into the roles of Physician and Anaesthesia Associates and is now supporting adoption of the recommendations.

Dr Jason Lawson is an experienced medical doctor with a demonstrated history of working in the medical & health care industry as well as in scientific research. Skilled in Lecturing, Curriculum Development, Public Speaking, with an aptitude to physiology, medicine and innovative technology.

Jason is a strong healthcare services professional with diverse exposure, representing experience from world class medical practice and innovative research, to fundamental delivery of health care in rural and resource deprived settings. Career aspirations inclusive of development in realms of surgical training and technology with a paralleled career in research and medical training.

Heather Cover-Kus is techUK’s Associate Director, Central Government & Education.

Heather works to represent the supplier community of tech products and services to Central Government, encouraging effective market engagement between suppliers and buyers, and supporting the transformational power of tech in public service delivery. She is a big advocate for appropriate and meaningful social value in public procurement.

Prior to joining techUK in April 2022 as Head of Central Government Programme, Heather worked in the Economic Policy and Small States Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat.  She led the organisation’s FinTech programme and worked to create an enabling environment for developing countries to take advantage of the socio-economic benefits of FinTech.

Before moving to the UK, Heather worked at the Office of the Prime Minister of The Bahamas and the Central Bank of The Bahamas.

Heather holds a Graduate Diploma in Law from BPP, a Masters in Public Administration (MPA) from LSE, and a BA in Economics and Sociology from Macalester College.

James Freed leads the Digital Academy for Health and Care, an organisation dedicated to supporting many teams in health and care deliver more value tomorrow than they did today. He was the last Chief Digital and Information Officer for Health Education England and his career has taken him through Cancer Research, Change Management and Standards development.

In 2017, James was voted by peers as one of the top 100 influencers globally in Health IT as part of the #HIT100 twitter campaign. He is a Fellow of the British Computer Society, a FedIP accredited Leading Practitioner and a Chartered Health CIO accredited through CHIME.

​Professor Nisreen Ameen is Professor of Artificial Intelligence and Policy at Henley Business School, University of Reading. She is an internationally recognised scholar and policy expert whose work focuses on AI skills, workforce transformation, responsible innovation, digital inclusion and the governance of emerging technologies. She has published extensively in leading international journals, and her work has involved collaboration with organisations across a range of sectors, including LinkedIn, Oracle, Amazon, Bloomberg and Roche. Her policy work includes collaboration with Skills England and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. She is also Ambassador for Research at the Institute of Directors.​

Phil Smith CBE is Chair of Skills England, bringing extensive leadership in technology, innovation and skills development.

Former Cisco UK & Ireland CEO and Chairman, Phil also chaired Innovate UK and led key skills initiatives, including The Tech Partnership and the Digital Skills Council.

Awarded a CBE in 2019 for services to technology and skills, Phil has worked to bridge industry and education. His appointment as Skills England Chair in 2025 reflects his commitment to shaping the UK’s workforce for future economic needs.

Dani is the Policy Manager for Data & AI at techUK, the UK’s leading trade association for the technology sector, with around 1,200 companies in membership ranging from the very smallest to the very largest tech companies operating in the UK. At techUK, Dani’s focus areas include Smart Data, the data economy, automated decision-making, international data transfers, and international data sharing. Prior to this, Dani worked in political monitoring, focusing on technology and culture, media and sport, and she also holds an undergraduate degree in History from the University of Bristol and an MPhil in Modern European History from the University of Cambridge.